Garment



March 6, 1962 w. F- FARAH GARMENT Filed Nov. 27, 1959 INVENT ORWZZZMI/ZZJara/ZZ 6 4 i ATTORNEY$ United States Patent Office 3,023,421Patented Mar. 6, 1962 3,023,421 GNT William F. Farah, Farah Bldg, ElPaso, Tex. Filed Nov. 27, 1959, Ser. No. 855,565 2 Claims. (Cl. 2-252)This invention relates to garments, and in particular to pocketfasteners of the snap type. As a general proposition the need for suchfasteners has long been recog nized and many expedients have beenproposed, from button holes to zippers which have proved sufficient, toa degree, for the main purpose, but which fall short of the idealattainments of the present invention. For instance, buttons areunsightly and unreliable both in manipulation and durability besidesconstituting a troublesome and possibly hazardous projection, especiallyon the back pockets of trousers. For eflicient operation, snap fastenersrequire finger pressure on opposite sides of the mating elements andtherefore their use 011 clothing has had limited application and has notbeen found to be feasible heretofore on pockets.

It is therefore among the objects of the present invention to provide asnap fastener arrangement for clothing, and with particular emphasis onits efficacious use on trouser pockets, which is simple yet effective,low in cost, durable, unobtrusive, and altogether pleasing inappearance.

These and other objects are attained by the present invention, which,briefly stated, comprises in its preferred form a looped fabric strap ofgenerally rectangular configuration, enclosing one element of a snapfastener coacting in coverin relation with the complementary part of thefastener, which latter is secured to the marginal portion of the pocket.

For a more particular description of the invention reference is made tothe accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary view of the upper portion of a pair oftrousers adjacent the belt line;

FIGURE 2 is a section taken along the line 22 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is a section taken along the line 33 of FIGURE 2.

Referring to the drawings by characters of reference, there is shown, inFIGURE 1, a portion 1 of the outer fabric of a trouser garment havingbelt loops 2, a side pocket opening indicated generally by the numeral3, and a back pocket with outer fabric 4 and a folded top reinforcement5 lapped around both sides of the outer fabric 4. Reinforcing fold 5also encloses the top extremity of the outer portion 6 of the pocketliner, the whole assembly being secured by appropriate stitching, in theconventional manner. Received in a suitable through opening in thisreinforced marginal portion of the pocket is the male member of a snapfastener having a shank 7, opposed outer flanges 8 and 9, and anoutwardly extending, worldng head -19, all of which may partake ofconventional construction.

The female complement of the snap fastener is carried by a looped,fabric strap indicated generally by the numeral 11. As best seen inFIGURE 2, strap 11 is folded upon itself to provide an outer wall 12 andan inner wall 13 with closed bottom 14, and the upper ends of therespective walls are secured as by stitching within a pocket formed bythe outer fabric 1 of the garment and the inner wall .15 of the pocketliner. In the usual manner, a strip of fabric 1 is also included on rearwall 15 for reinforcement and for appearance. With this arrangement itwill be apparent that the looped strap 11 may be raised or lowered inwhat amounts to hinged relation about the pocket opening.

The loop of strap 11 is utilized to anchor the female element of thefastener in a state of concealment. To this end the female membercomprises a rectangular anchoring head or plate 16 lying entirely withinthe loop near the bottom 14 thereof.

The female element proper comprises a segmented, spring snap ring 17,which may be of conventional construction, lying exteriorly of the innerwall 13 of the strap loop and fixed to the anchoring head 16 as byrivets 18 passing through the said inner wall 13 of the strap loop.

The manner of manipulation of the device will, of course, be obvious.However, it is desired to point out that the location of one fastenerpar-t on the outer wall of the pocket coacting with a complementaryportion carried on an auxiliary flap of limited width enables the userto secure purchase on both extremities of the fastener with the fingersfor the snapping of the parts into joined relation. A further advantageis that both components are carried by portions of the garment whichhave sturdy construction and thus provide firm and longlastinganchorage, 'In addition to the firm anchorage afforded by the loop thestrap arrangement is attended by the all-important result of concealingthe metal parts of the fastener, which not only obviates theobjectionable features of protruding mechanical parts, but results in anoverall pleasing appearance. Such twofold benefits also flow from therectangular shape of the anchor plate 16 within the loop which not onlyenhances lever action on the snap features but also lessens the chanceof wear and dislocation of the assembly as well as retaining the shape,and thus the appearance, of the loop strap.

A further decided improvement from the standpoint of durability andreliability resides in the construction of the female member incomponents inside and outside of the strap loop, connected by rivets,rather than the usual method of mounting by means of a central shank ina through opening.

The strap loop 11 lends itself to large scale production since it may becut to length from long sections of material.

While a preferred embodiment has been shown and described, the inventionis not to be considered as limited thereby since various modificationsmay readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and Itherefore do not desire to be limited except insofar as may be properlyinferred from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. -In a garment having a slash pocket, a fastening arrangementcomprising an open-bight looped strap having its flat dimensiongenerally in the plane of the face of the garment, having its free endssecured upon one side of the pocket opening and having its closed endextending across the opening, and a snap fastener, having the first ofits components Wholly carried on the unexposed portion of the straploop, facing the garment, and the other component located on the portionof the garment overlaid by the loop in extended position, there- 5 by tobe in operative registry with said first component of the snap fastener.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein the head of the fastener componentcarried by the loop, is of generally rectangular shape and located closeto the bight 10 of the loop, to give shape to the fold formed betweenthe two faces of the loop.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

